Let it fade into Gray
by Amaris-the-Demon
Summary: Vanellope has been president for all of two days, when she finally decides to explore her castle. Only, a certain find in the Fungeon may change her life and Sugar Rush forever...
1. Chapter 1: Who are you?

**Hiya peeps! I'm back! So this is my first ever WIR chapter book, so reviews/follows/favorites are very much appreciated. **

**Oh and a warning, the POV changes every chapter. So this chapter is in Vanellope's POV, the next chapter will be in She-who-shall-not-be-named-yet's POV, then back to Vanellope and so on and so forth. Like the Poisonwood Bible if you've ever read it. Fabulous novel, very interesting...and i'm going off on a rant aren't I? **

**Okay what evs enjoy dah first chapter. **

Chapter 1: Who are you?  
_Who are you? Who-oo-oo Who-oo-ooo? I really want to know!_

Vanellope POV

"I CANT BELIEVE I LIVE HERE!" I screeched looking around at my castle. Sour Bill rubbed where his ears would be.

I skipped down the many halls and looked in several rooms.  
"Geez! I've got like a bajillion guest rooms and bathrooms!" I yelled and ran down the halls some more. However as I ran past a hall I backtracked some. _The Fungeon_ I thought. My gut was telling me to go in there for some reason. I bit my lower lip but unwillingly walked down the hall.

This part of the castle was dimly lit and overall creepy looking, but somehow I was compelled to keep walking. I looked at the cells on my left and right. _Open door, open door, open door, open door, _I thought and sighed. I looked to my right _closed door. _ I had walked half way down the hall when I stopped dead in my tracks. _CLOSED DOOR?! _ I turned around and sped back to the closed door.

"So I wasn't the only inmate" I thought out loud and opened the door. It was a lot like the cell I was stuck in only. I sighed. It looked empty. As I was about to turn around to go back though I noticed that on top of the sugar cube "chair" in the middle of the room, was helmet. A red and white helmet. My eyes widen and I walked into the cell to look closer at it.

And that's when something slammed into my back; I was shoved forward towards and hit my head on the helmet.  
"Oops!" I swear I heard someone say before I heard retreating footsteps. I got up quickly and clutched the helmet in my hand. Whoever did that was gonna pay. I ran out of the cell, looked down the hall and saw a flash of red and white take a corner out of the Fungeon block. _  
_"Turbo?!" I exclaimed "But how did he survive?!" I shook my head "That doesn't matter; all that matters is that I don't him get out!"

I sprinted after him and saw him up ahead. I looked at him quizzically though, for I could have sworn that just before he took the corner that led to the throne room, I saw him in a skirt. _Since when does Turbo wear a skirt? _I thought. Once again I shook my head and ran after him.

I ran into the throne room and yelled  
"Stop him!" My Oreo Guards, Wynnchel and Duncan immediately had their weapons out and at the ready as he- I mean  
"Her?" I said out loud as who I thought was Turbo, let out a high pitched scream and whirled around. She started to run towards me; but the minute she saw me standing there she came to a screeching halt. Her yellow irises and the whites of her eyes were nearly nonexistent due to how dilated her pupils were. She was hyperventilating and her eyes were darting around looking for an exit. She was terrified and glitching uncontrollably.  
"Who are you?!" I exclaimed. She looked at me with her lower lip quivering before fainting and falling to the ground. Now that she was passed out she had stopped glitching and I could see her clearly. She wore a white racing jacket with a red stripe down each arm, a white skirt with a red stripe each side, pants that matched the skirt, white shoes with red bottoms and a red bow in her very short brown hair. She had light peach skin and rosy cheeks. I looked at the helmet in my hand and saw it was actually different from Turbo's, rather than just a red 'T' on the helmet it was actually a red outline of a 'T' making the inside of the outline look like another 'T'. I looked back and forth between the helmet and the girl.

"Who are you?" I asked to myself more than anyone else.  
"Um, ma'am pardon me for asking, but do you want us to lock her in the Fungeon?" Wynnchel asked and I shook my head.  
"Put her in one of the guest rooms. Make sure there's a guard at her door at all times and check on her every now and then to if she's awake or not. Let me know when she's awake" I walked over to my throne then remembered "Oh! And this is between us. As far as anyone outside this is concerned she doesn't exist. Got it?"  
"Yes ma'am" Wynnchel said and he and Duncan lifted up the mystery girl and carried her off.

I sat on my throne and questions started running through my mind. _Who is she? How long was she in the Fungeon? Why does she look like Turbo? Why did she attack me? Why did she look so scared? How come I've never seen her before? Why is she even here in the first place?! _

I groaned and slumped in my throne. I guess being president _really _is hard.  
"Ms. President you have to start the Random Roster Race" I heard the monotone voice of Sour Bill drone.  
"Fudge. Okay let's go" I said and walked off. _Maybe racing will help me get my head straight _I thought.

But one thing stuck out in my mind.

She didn't look like she knew where she was or who I was.

**DUN DUN DUN**

**As I've said before reviews/follows/favorites are appreciated. **


	2. Chapter 2: Wide Awake

**FYIs, FYIs everyone loves FYIs! K, here's the FYI: I'll change the POV when I damn well feel like it. So expect most chapters to be written in She-who-shall-not-be-named-until-you-read-a-little -further's POV. **

**Thanks to Raccon Girl, The Not-So-Ultimate Writer, Emiliee D, Wilfrerapo13, Tellingitkeitis1541, Sobe James, almp15 and Skylar the Swifthearted for reviewing/following/favoriting!**

Chapter 2: Wide Awake  
_Yeah, I was in the dark; I was falling hard. With an open heart, I'm wide awake_

She-who-shall-not-be-named-until-she-introduces-he rself POV

I didn't open my eyes immediately when I woke up. That was habit. I felt the grou- no wait. This isn't ground. I felt the soft fabric beneath my fingertips. A bed. I'm in a bed. That's a first. I kept my eyes closed and just savored the fact I was in one of these beds I had heard so much about. Finally I opened my eyes, that was the only way I would know if I really was in a bed or not. My mind loved to play tricks on me. Illusions. Both a sweet escape and bitter prank.

To my surprise I was in a real bed. Then I remembered what had happened and I mentally slapped myself. _You really didn't think you escape plan through did you? No you did not. Once again idiocy gets the better of you. Bravo, bravo _I thought bitterly and sat up. Though I guess it was okay, I mean I'm not in the Fungeon so clearly I did something right. _In fact I'm not in the Fungeon at all_ I thought as I looked around, I must've been in a guest room. I slid off of the bed and looked around again. I turned around and grinned to ear. A window! A huge window!

I just about ran to the window. I opened it up and stuck my head out of it.  
"Oh my gosh! It's a real. There's a breeze and look at the scenery!" I exclaimed and stared at the landscapes around me. I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply.

"Y'know you're supposed to be a secret. You yelling at the top of your lungs out a window isn't helping with that" I whirled around and saw the raven-haired girl I accidently hit standing there. I grimaced.  
"Sorry" I murmured.  
"You were just yelling out the window, it's no biggie" She responded and I shook my head.  
"No not that! I mean I am sorry about that but I mean sorry for almost knocking you out …yesterday? Has day passed? I don't know" I said hurriedly. She raised an eyebrow at me.  
"Yeah it's been a day. And thanks for apologizing about it, but why the heck did you do that in the first place?!" She said angrily. I shrunk back. _Uh oh, I made her mad _I thought and gulped.  
"I thought you were Turbo" I squeaked out, feeling very small under the raven haired girl's glare. Her face only softened a fraction of an inch but I take that as a good sign.  
"Turbo? Why would you think I was Turbo? He's dead" She said as though it was common knowledge, which it probably was.  
"Turbo's dead?" I said and without meaning to a smile traced my lips.  
"Yeah, you didn't know that?" She said and looked at me quizzically.  
"No, not until now" I answered honestly, I looked out the window again "Who's the king or queen now?"  
"Me" The raven haired girl answered. My attention snapped back to her. I bowed down before her.  
"Your majesty" I said keeping my head bowed.  
"Get up ya goof ball. I'm the President, y'know like a constitutional democracy?" She said and I grimaced. _Actually I don't know what a constitutional democracy is _I thought but stood up.  
"Sorry Ms. President" I apologized and she shook her head.  
"Who are you?" Ms. President asked and I gazed out the window again.  
"I'm Turbo-Tessa" I answered quietly. The silence that followed that statement was deafening. So I just stared out the window waiting for Ms. President to do something.

"What?" She said after what seemed like an eternity.  
"I'm the 'daughter' of Turbo so to speak" I answered. Again it was a long time before Ms. President spoke again.  
"What? H-how?" She sputtered out.  
"It's complicated" I said and shuffled my feet uncomfortably.  
"That doesn't matter. What matters is how the heck do you exist?!" She just about yelled at me. I inwardly winced and shrunk back. I didn't need to look at Ms. President to know she was glaring daggers at me.  
"He created me. Using his code and other codes in the code room. He made me. Only because I was made here in Sugar Rush turned out more like a Sugar Rush character than a TurboTime character. So he locked me up and-" I stopped speaking and rubbed my arm. That was a nervous habit.  
"And?" Ms. President said expectantly. I looked down and leaned against the wall. I closed my eyes tightly.  
"Turbo-Tessa? Are you okay?" Ms. President asked.  
"No I'm in a daze" I said and collapsed to the floor. I didn't pass out, just collapsed.  
"What's wrong?!" Ms. President exclaimed and knelt down beside me.  
"I've never been outside of my cell" I said breathlessly. I chanced a look at Ms. President's face. It was contorted with rage and I was afraid it was directed at me. But she looked away from and I realized it was directed at something else.

"Ms. President, what now?" I asked her. She looked at me surprised.  
"What do you mean?" She asked.  
"What happens to me now?" I asked.  
"You stay here, in the castle" Ms. President answered and I nodded.  
"Okay" I said and looked down at the floor "Thank you Ms. President, for everything"  
"You're welcome- I think. Oh and my name isn't Ms. President, it's Vanellope" She said and I nodded.  
"Vanellope" I broke out into a grin "So_ you_ were that glitch my dad was constantly complaining about"  
"So you've heard of me" She said.  
"From what little my dad said" I answered and shrugged "But eh, anyone who gave him hell was A-Okay in my book"  
"Then I think we'll get along" Vanellope said and I smiled.  
"I think we will" I confirmed and looked at Vanellope nodding "I think we will"


	3. Chapter 3: Don't You Worry Child

**Thanks to Raccon Girl, The Not-So-Ultimate Writer, Emiliee D, Wilfrerapo13, Tellingitkeitis1541, Sobe James, almp15, Skylar the Swifthearted, TwitchyTeagan, JustSomeAverageGuy and Loyal-LeoBlade for reviewing/following/favoriting!**

**Updates! Yay!**

Chapter 3: Don't You Worry Child  
_There was a time I used to look into my father's eyes. In a happy home, I was a king, I had a gold throne. Those days are gone,_

Tessa POV

Exploring the castle never got old. It was so big!

I had been in the castle with Vanellope for three or so days and I guess she liked me because she let me explore the castle by myself with no escort. I was skipping down one of these halls when I heard Vanellope sigh audibly. Most anyone else wouldn't have heard it, but sharp hearing was a skill I had developed. I crept down the stairs to one of the entrances of the throne room and peered in, making sure that I could see what was going on, but anyone who was there couldn't see _me_.  
"Taffyta, I know that Gloyd's pranked you for the third time this week; but there's nothing I can do about it" Vanellope said tiredly. A girl that wore strawberry themed clothes and was so blonde her hair was almost white huffed angrily.  
"You could put him in the _Fungeon!_" She exclaimed and Vanellope massaged her temples. I glared at pink girl; I had spent more than my fair share in the Fungeon. I'd like to see her in the Fungeon for a few years and see how she'd like it.  
"Taffyta I run a democracy, I can't just throw people in jail for pranks!" Vanellope said frustrated. The strawberry themed girl-Taffyta- fixed a glare on Vanellope that would make probably anyone else shrink back in fear; but Vanellope if anything at all just looked annoyed.  
"Some leader you are" Taffyta muttered and stormed off. I scrambled back up the stairs quickly before she could see me and waited to come back down until I was certain she was gone. I walked quietly over to Vanellope's throne. She hadn't noticed me.

"So that's what your citizens are like? I don't envy your job" I said and shook my head. Vanellope jumped about two feet in the air.  
"Gob! Will you stop doing that?!" She exclaimed and glared at me.  
"Doing what?" I asked and looked at her confused.  
"Sneaking up on me! Yeash, it's creepy" She said and I shrugged.  
"Sorry" I murmured "Who is that anyways?"  
"Taffyta, she's a racer" Vanellope said and I nodded "Ironically she's actually one of the best, after me of course"  
"Of course" I said and walked over to one of the huge stain glass windows that lined the hall of the throne room. I opened it up a crack and looked outside. Sure enough the racers were racing again. Probably preparing for the Random Roster Race. I looked at them longingly. I wouldn't tell Vanellope because I knew that I was supposed to be a secret, but I _really _wanted to race.

"Hey you okay?" Vanellope asked and I raised and lowered a shoulder.  
"I'm fine Coach" I said. I had taken to calling Vanellope Coach because in the few days I had been here she had taught me a lot. She grimaced.  
"No you're not. I know that face. I had that face when I was glitch looking at the racers racing. You want to race don't you?" She said. Gob, nothing got past her.  
"Yeah" I admitted "Hey but I'm okay. I know the sitch, I'm not allowed outside because" I started walking towards the garage of the castle "No one likes a Turbo"

I put my goggles on and laid on the creeper, I rolled under the Lickety-Split 2 and pulled a wrench out of my toolbox. This was one of the things I enjoyed doing, mechanic work. I tightened the bolt and started checking the wires. I saw a loose wire and unscrewed a panel blocking me access to it. I fixed the wire and started to the panel back.  
"Ms. President!" I was so concerned with my work I didn't realize someone had walked into the garage. I jumped and the panel I was holding in place hit me on the head.  
"Crepe!" I cursed "Stupid fudging gobstoppers…."  
I rolled out from under the car. Duncan was standing there smiling nervously.  
"What are you doing here?!" I exclaimed and rolled back under the car, fixing the panel that had fallen onto me.  
"Sorry Tessa. I'm looking for President Von Schweetz, she needs to decide whether or not to allow some of the Candy Cane Forest to be cleared so a motel can be built" Duncan explained and I tightened the panel and rolled out again.  
"Last I saw Coach she was in the throne room. If she not there she's probably on her balcony deciding stuff" I said and sat up. I rubbed some of the fudge lubricant off my face and pushed my goggles onto my forehead.  
"Thanks Tessa" Duncan said and turned leave.  
"Duncan wait!" The cop stopped and turned to face me.  
"Yes?" He asked confused.  
"Turbo was horrible to me, but what made him so bad otherwise?" I asked.  
"Well, he fooled everyone. As you know he pretended to be the true monarch of Sugar Rush, King Candy. Whereas the truth was he was just a greedy, selfish racer who wanted the spotlight all to himself" Duncan explained and I nodded. I took that explanation to heart.  
"Do you think…" I stopped because I was scared of the answer, but continued anyways "Do you think if I ever race, I'll end up like him? Greedy? Selfish? A sore winner and loser?"  
"No" Duncan said "You're nothing like him"  
"Thanks Duncan. I appreciate that" I said put my goggles back on and rolled back under the Lickety-Split 2.  
"It's true" He said before I heard his footsteps retreat out of the garage. I smiled to myself.

OooOOOooO

At some point I must've fallen asleep under the Lickety-Split. I woke up when someone kick my foot lightly. I bolted up and hit my head on the underside of the kart.  
"Ow! Fudge!" I exclaimed and rolled out from under the car. I looked up and saw Vanellope there suppressing a laugh.  
"Enjoy your nap Boogerbrain?" She asked sweetly and I rolled my eyes.  
"In fact I did Coach. It was the waking up I didn't particularly like" I answered smoothly and glared at her. She chuckled.  
"Well Naps Magee, I need my kart for the RRR" She said and I nodded.  
"Let me just double check really quick, make sure I didn't leave anything unfinished" I said and rolled under the car. I did an onceover and didn't see anything out of place or unfinished. I rolled out.

"Yep, she's ready to race" I said "I played around with the steering and added some more lubricant to…."  
I noticed Vanellope had covered her mouth and was trying not to laugh.  
"Not _that _kind of lubricant!" I exclaimed and she lost it. Next thing I knew though I was laughing too "Okay, okay. The point is the wheels shouldn't stick or be terribly bumpy. So let me know how she takes the corners. Allegedly you should be able to take corners faster than a Li-mon on caffeine" I explained.  
"Kay, thanks Tessa. I'll let you know after the race" Vanellope said and I smiled as she jumped in her car.  
"Good luck Coach" I said and opened the garage door for her.  
"Pssh, with you as my mechanic, I don't need luck" She said and tore off towards the track. I smiled and headed upstairs to watch the race on the big screen.

**Reviews/follows/favorites are _still _appreciated **


	4. Chapter 4: How You Remind Me

**Thanks to Raccon Girl, The Not-So-Ultimate Writer, Emiliee D, Wilfrerapo13, Tellingitkeitis1541, Sobe James, almp15, Skylar the Swifthearted, TwitchyTeagan, JustSomeAverageGuy, Loyal-LeoBlade, I support PewDieCry, Ghastly bloody blade, WhatNames, Lonewo1f28 and Iluvvanellopevonschweetz for reviewing/following/favoriting! **

**I'm **_**so**_** happy! So many followers! *squeals with joy***

**WARNING: There is a **_**tiny **_**bit of angst in this chapter. I repeat **_**tiny. **_**The rest of the book shouldn't be angsty though. **

Chapter 4: How You Remind Me  
_This time I'm mistaken for handing you a heart worth breaking and I've been wrong, I've been down, been to the bottom of every bottle. These five words in my head scream "are we having fun yet?"_

Vanellope POV

"Let the Random Roster Race begin!" I yelled and jumped into my kart. I smiled and waved to Ralph, Calhoun and Felix who always made it to my races. The marshmallow floating in front of me held the lights. Red to yellow to GREEN! I tore out of the starting line and sped along the track. Taffyta quickly caught up to me but I smirked and gunned it.

The Lickety-Split lurched forward and I found myself shocked by fast I was going. I mean duh, if I gunned it I was going to go fast, but darn! Tessa really fixed up my kart. I grinned like a fool and if possible smiled wider as I approached Gumball Gorge.

I flew off of the ramp and dodged a giant gumball with ease. _Darn, the steering really __**is **__great! _I thought as I dodged another gumball. I ran into a Sweet Seeker and smiled. I twirled the car around and shot at the racers behind me. Gloyd gone, Candlehead crash, and Adorabeezle adios! I flipped back around and almost didn't dodge a gumball in time. But due to the upgraded mechanics of my car I dodged it by the skin of my teeth. _Okay, I am definitely thanking Tessa when I get home. _I thought and sped towards the Cake Mountain. _This is really where I'll put the steering to test. _

I took the twirled track that led up to the tunnel so easily I nearly laughed. I was gonna win by a landslide! I flew out of the tunnel and landed on the ramp.  
"Sweet mother of monkey milk this is awesome!" I yelled and flew towards Ice Creamland.

The frosty air didn't bother me at all. I had the track to myself! I was cruising rather than racing. In fact I was excited when I finally heard an engine approaching. I glanced to my right and saw Taffyta smiling smugly at me.  
"I was hoping for some competition!" I yelled at her.  
"Bring it on Glitch!" She yelled back. I glared at her and rammed into her. She nearly lost control of steering due to the slippery ice ground but ran into the guardrail none the less. I smirked and drove past her.

I flew through the tunnel and laughed. I was home-free. I crossed the finish line and won first. I parked at the shoulder and looked up at the board.

1st- Vanellope Von Schweetz

2nd- Taffyta Muttonfudge

3rd- Candlehead

4th- Rancis Fluggerbutter

5th- Gloyd Orangeboar

6th- Minty Zaki

7th- Jubileena Bing-Bing

8th- Swizzle Malarkey

9th- Torvald Batterbutter

I smiled as the last few racers crossed the finish line.  
"Not bad Ankle-biter" I looked up and smiled at Ralph.  
"Thanks Stinkbrain" I said "Do I look smug? I feel smug"  
"Whatever top shelf" He said and I smiled.  
"Top shelf!" I cheered and we fist bumped.  
"Congrats half pint" I heard Calhoun say. I smiled at her and Felix.  
"Thanks everyone! Hey who wants to celebrate? I'm sure I can get one of my chefs to whip up some root beer floats" I said and Ralph nodded eagerly.  
"Sorry Vanellope, but Calhoun and I have a date" Felix said and I shrugged.  
"S'kay, see you tomorrow!" I said. Me and Ralph headed to my castle.

I walked in first and gasped. Standing there in the throne room was Tessa. She ran forward to greet me.  
"Vanellope you were great!" She exclaimed and I facepalmed. I had completely forgotten about her! Sure enough Ralph came in and if it weren't for the fact that no one was supposed to know about Tessa, I would have doubled over laughing at the expression on her face when she saw Ralph.  
"Milk my duds! It's Wreck-it Ralph!" She just about yelled and started to run away. Ralph looked shocked but then his expression turned hard.  
"Hey!" He bellowed and he grabbed the collar of Tessa's jacket.  
"Put me down!" she yelled and squirmed in midair.  
"Ralph!" I yelped. But then something weird happened. Tessa's eyes turned completely white and glowing.  
"Put. Me. DOWN!" She yelled with a power behind her voice I had never heard before. Her entire body shone neon orange and she glitched. Ralph's eyes widened and he dropped her.  
"Ow!" Ralph yelped. She hit the ground running and hid behind my throne.

_What the heck was that?! _I thought and then looked at her form quaking with fear behind my throne. I realized she hadn't been around anyone taller than Wynnchel, so being picked up by Ralph must have been terrifying to her.  
"Great going Stinkbrain" I growled at Ralph.  
"What did I do?" He said and I facepalmed.  
"Ralph, you're nine feet tall and weigh 643 pounds! You kind of give off a bad first impression" I reminded him and started to walk over to the throne.  
"Wait, who is that?! Why does she sound, look and act like Turbo?" He asked and I groaned.  
"Her name is Tessa, _Turbo_-Tessa. As for her backstory that's not my place to say" I said and walked over to Tessa. I stood behind the throne and looked at Tessa.

"Tess, you can come out. He's not gonna hurt you. Believe it or not that lugnut is actually one of my best friends" I said.  
"I know that. You told me that, what you didn't tell me was he was _HUGE!_" She said and glared at me while she got up "Next time tell me his fudging height _before _you 'introduce' us!"  
She tugged on the sides of her jacket much like how Turbo would tug on his jacket when he was frustrated. She walked back over to Ralph but not before sending me another glare over her shoulder.

"My apologies Wreck-it Ralph. My _friend _didn't mention your height. I'm not used to anyone taller than a donut" She said and then closed her eyes and took a deep breath then opened her eyes and smiled kindly at Ralph "It's nice to meet you"  
"Uh, you too. I think" Ralph said confused. She smiled again. I shook my head. Yup, that was Tessa alright; be pissed off, take a deep breath and bam! Be friendly as could be. I walked back over to them.  
"So uh, Tessa mind telling me who you are? I mean how you're here" Ralph said and Tessa groaned.  
"Just to be blunt. Turbo made me, wasn't happy with the results and locked me up. Thankfully Coach here saved me so to speak" Tessa explained briefly. I couldn't blame her. Even though I didn't know in detail what happened to her, I could tell she didn't like talking about it.  
"Yup and she's been living here in the castle as my mechanic ever since" I said and draped an arm over her shoulders. She smiled at me and nodded.  
"Uh huh" Ralph said and nodded slowly "So who knows about her?"  
"Just me, my guards and now you" I answered "Oh! Don't tell anyone about her. She's a secret"  
"I can see why" Ralph said kind of rudely. Tessa just shrugged and smiled goofily.  
"So who's up for root beer floats? The chefs taught me how to make 'em" Tessa said and smiled. She looked at me hopefully and I smiled.  
"Sure!" I said and she ran off towards the kitchen.

"Vanellope are you crazy?!" Ralph exclaimed at me the minute Ralph thought Tessa was out of ear shot.  
"What?" I said and looked up at him.  
"She's just like Turbo! What if she's just earning your trust so she can _kill _you! Or worse" He said darkly.  
"Ralph! She's _nothing _like Turbo. Last time I checked, Turbo didn't wear skirts or have light peach skin or rosy cheeks or-" Ralph cut me off  
"You know that's not what I mean. She _acts _like him" Ralph said and crossed his arms.  
"She does not! She's kind and caring and selfless! She is _nothing _like Turbo!" I yelled at him.  
"Turbo was a convincing actor" Ralph pointed out  
"She is not acting, she _really _is a good person" I said stubbornly.  
"She just trying to fool you! The minute you turn your back she'll be after your throne _and _your life" He said just as stubbornly as me. I would have shouted back a response if it weren't for the hurt filled voice that suddenly seemed to take up all the space in the room.

"Why would you say that?"

I grimaced and we both turned towards the voice. Standing there with a hurt expression on her face- was Tessa.  
"Why would you think that?" She said and looked at Ralph. She looked truly hurt. Ralph just stared at her shocked.  
"Why?" She asked. Ralph shuffled his large feet uncomfortably.  
"Tessa, he didn't…" I started then just looked at her face and stopped speaking. Tessa was completely ignoring me. She just kept looking at Ralph.  
"Why?" She repeated and tears formed in the corners of her eyes "Why?!"


	5. Chapter 5: Breakeven

**Thanks to Raccon Girl, The Not-So-Ultimate Writer, Emiliee D, Wilfrerapo13, Tellingitkeitis1541, Sobe James, almp15, Skylar the Swifthearted, TwitchyTeagan, JustSomeAverageGuy, Loyal-LeoBlade, I support PewDieCry, Ghastly bloody blade, WhatNames, Lonewo1f28 and Iluvvanellopevonschweetz for reviewing/following/favoriting!**

**Damn has there already been four chapters? Whoo wee. **

**WARNING: This chapter contains dramatizations of actual events, viewer discretion is advised. (basically there be some dark stuff 'bout Tessa's past in this)**

Chapter 5: Breakeven  
_They say bad things happen for a reason but no wise words gonna stop the bleeding_

Tessa POV 

"Why?" I repeated and stared at Ralph "You don't know me, why would you say that?"  
"I knew Turbo" He answered and I felt myself spike with energy like I had when Ralph picked me up.  
"You knew a monster!" I screamed at him and glitched over to him "I won't deny my lineage to him but I am not that abuser, that creature, _that thing!_"

I glitched away from Ralph and ran to the garage, tears streaming down my face.

I went and sat in a corner of the garage and buried my head in my hands. As I cried I rolled up the sleeve of my right arm and looked at the cut marks there. Due to the fact I was never supposed to exist my code took a while to heal cuts and other such wounds. The cut marks spelt a one word or two words with a hyphen in the middle: Turbo-tastic! My mind wandered back to that day.

_Turbo slammed me into the wall and I yelped in pain.  
"That Glitch! In the race?! How?! And Wreck-it Ralph on the loose? Even better!" He growled to himself and I struggled to get up. I hated it when Turbo got into a bad mood, because it meant a session for me. Before I had stood up all the way though, I saw the back of his hand fly towards me and I was thrown to the floor. Next thing I knew Turbo had me pinned down and a knife appeared in his hand. 'This is it' I thought 'He's finally going to kill me' _

_But he didn't, instead he took the knife and started carving up my arm. I screamed in pain but he didn't stop. Tears streamed from my eyes and I struggled to break free, but he was stronger than me, and he knew it. Finally he stopped.  
"Turbo-tastic!" He snarled and walked off slamming the door behind him. I looked at my arm and sure enough, carved there was his catchphrase 'Turbo-tastic'. That was the day I finally decided to escape. _

I looked back at the arm and touched the wound lightly, but that light touch broke the thin scab over it and the cuts started bleeding again. I quickly pulled the bow out of my hair and undid it. Then I tied it tightly around the top of the wound to cut off the blood circulation. I winced slightly as I did it but it wasn't that bad, it wasn't the first time I had to treat a wound like this.

"Tessa! Tess! Where are you?!" I heard Coach calling my name. I shrunk back into the corner and bit my lip, praying she would just run past me. But she didn't.  
"Tessa! There you are" She said relieved but then noticed me holding my arm "Tessa what's wrong with your arm?"  
"It's nothing Coach" I said and turned away from her "It's nothing"  
"I don't believe you!" She said and before I could react, she glitched in front of me and grabbed my arm. She looked at the still bleeding cuts in shock and dropped my arm. I quickly applied pressure to the cuts and bit my lip again.  
"He did that to you? Didn't he? That's why you called him an abuser, that's why you won't go into detail about your past" She said in shock and I bowed my head "C'mon"  
"Where are we going?" I asked as she grabbed my not hurt arm and dragged me out of the garage.  
"To the nurse doi!" She said and I gulped.  
"Wait! Isn't that in the village!" I said and she facepalmed.  
"Crepe! You're right" Vanellope said and shook her head.  
"Coach, it's okay. Just give me a first-aid kit and I can fix myself up. I had to deal with this for fifteen years remember?" I said reassuringly to her and she looked at me pained but nodded.

I sat on my bed and dressed my cut, the whole time Vanellope was staring at me guiltily. Finally I couldn't take it anymore.  
"Good gob! Stop staring will ya? It's not your fault!" I said and glared at her. She nodded and I sighed relieved.

"I can't keep you here" She said suddenly.  
"What?" I asked.  
"I can't just keep you cooped up here. So I've got an idea" She said and I cocked my head at her.  
"You're gonna let me out?" I said shocked.  
"Yep, but not as Turbo-Tessa" She said and I looked at her confused. She smiled and I grimaced.

OooOOOooO

An hour or so later, I had been changed into Candy Cane Jane; resident of Sugar Rush. Vanellope had changed my code so now I had a pretty good disguise. My jacket was still white but now the sleeves and collar were striped like candy canes, my skirt was now lined with peppermints and my pants were also candy cane striped. My bow's middle was a peppermint and striped and I had one white shoe and one red shoe. Vanellope had also changed my eye color to a dark mint green.

If it weren't for my still short brown hair, I wouldn't have recognized myself.

"Holy hand grenades! I look like a different person!" I exclaimed.  
"That's the point" Vanellope said "Now, what's your name?"  
"Tur- err- Candy Cane Jane" I stammered.  
"Not good _Jane_" Vanellope said and looked at me crossly "What's your name?"  
"Candy Cane Jane" I said confidently and Vanellope nodded.  
"How come we've never seen you before?" She asked  
"I'm a new update to the game" I said and Vanellope nodded.  
"Good, now what are the rules?" She said.  
"No saying anything _King Candy _would've said. No glitching, not because it's bad but because my code is orange. And no Power Surges" I said and she nodded. We had decided to call when I got all glowy like and could actually burn people a Power Surge.  
"Good. I think you're ready Jane" Vanellope said but I shook my head.  
"I need to finish my car" I said and Vanellope looked at me quizzically "I found King Candy's car stashed under a tarp in the garage. It was beaten up, but I've fixed mostly. Now I just need to add the finishing touches"  
"Okay, but make sure it doesn't _look _it was his car" She said and I rolled my eyes.  
"Chillax Coach, now that I know my theme it won't look his car at all" I said and started to go off to the garage. I heard her sigh heavily but I ignored it.

In the end I changed the wheels to huge peppermints, got rid of the three horns. I did a full body paint job changing the coloring from sparkly cream to just white and added red racing stripes to it. I changed the king emblem on the hood to two candy canes that crossed over one another. I got rid of the flags in the on it as well as the crown shaped back support. I changed the seat to a pair of peppermints, and the exhaust pipes to candy cane shaped ones. The weird wing-like sides I got rid of completely and instead made it three peppermints connected.

When I stood back to admire my work I nodded. It looked different and cool.  
"It's missing one thing" I said and added a racecar tail to the back and nodded "Done"


	6. Chapter 6: Titanium

**Thanks to Raccon Girl, The Not-So-Ultimate Writer, Emiliee D, Wilfrerapo13, Tellingitkeitis1541, Sobe James, almp15, Skylar the Swifthearted, TwitchyTeagan, JustSomeAverageGuy, Loyal-LeoBlade, I support PewDieCry, Ghastly bloody blade, WhatNames, Lonewo1f28, Iluvvanellopevonschweetz, godessdestruction, mario681, Gamma102, dancer4813, Shyfrost and Sam L. Manson for reviewing/following/favoriting!**

**At long last the angst shall stop! Hoorah! Prepare for sarcasm and racing! **

Chapter 6: Titanium  
_Ricochet, you take your aim fire away, fire away. You shoot me down but I won't fall. _

Tessa POV

Vanellope thought we wouldn't be able to meet the racers the next day but she forgot one thing- I'm the daughter of a damn racer. I learned how to drive almost immediately, so we headed off to the speedway.  
"You up for a little competition?" Vanellope asked and smiled at me. I smiled at her and put on my helmet (which now instead of my usual 'T' on it, it had two candy canes that crossed over one another) and my goggles.  
"Bring it on!" I said challengingly.  
"Last one to the speedway is a rotten chocolate egg!" She said and took off. I shifted into drive put the pedal to the metal.

"Whoo hoo!" I yelled as I caught up to her. We were neck and neck as we approached the speedway. As we crossed the bridge I smiled knowingly at Vanellope.  
"I'm gonna win!" She yelled.  
"I will admit you're better than me" I yelled back, smiling.  
"The why are you smiling?" She yelled at me.  
"Because I know something you don't know" I said and she looked at me slightly amused.  
"And what's that?" She asked.  
"I didn't have my accelerator all the way down" I said and gunned it, pulling far away from Vanellope. I drove into the speedway and came to a stop in a cloud of yellow sugary dust.  
"And that's how you drive" I said as Vanellope pulled in besides me. She shrugged and nodded. I hopped out of my kart and pushed my goggles onto my helmet.  
"Not bad" She said and I smirked.  
"Not bad? You crazy Pres? That was awesome!" I turned and saw a boy standing there with shoulder length dark green hair and striped themed blue clothing. He smiled at me but then his expression changed into one of confusion.

"Um who are you anyways?" He asked and I smiled.  
"Candy Cane Jane, new racer" I said and stuck my hand out, he shook it and I smiled "Who are _you _anyways?"  
"Swizzle Malarkey or the Swizz as the ladies call me" He said proudly and winked at the girl racers behind him. Most of them rolled their eyes at Swizzle but a few just laughed. I chuckled.  
"Well it's nice to meet you, _the Swizz_" I said and he smiled. Vanellope shook her head and pushed me over to the other racers.  
"Okay you met Swizzle, well these are the rest of the racers" Vanellope said and pointed to the racers as she introduced them "Minty Zaki, Candlehead, Taffyta Muttonfudge, Gloyd Orangeboar, Rancis Fluggerbutter, Adorabeezle Winterpop, Snowanna Rainbeau, Torvald Batterbutter, Jubileena Bing-Bing" She paused to take a breath "Citrusella Flugpucker, Nougetsia Brumblestain, Sticky Wipplesnit, and Crumbelina DiCaramello"  
"Got it" I said and nodded.  
"Time for the RRR" Vanellope said breathlessly, for she was still trying to catch her breath from introducing all the racers.

I hopped back into my kart and waited for Vanellope to give the okay to race.  
"Hey newbie" I looked up and saw Taffyta looking at me "Good luck"  
"Thanks" I said and smiled.  
"You're gonna need it" She added slyly and I glared at her. I didn't like her; I didn't like her at all.  
"Let the Random Roster Race begin!" Vanellope yelled and hopped into her car. I gripped my steering wheel and waited for the green light. I glared at Taffyta. _I'm gonna beat that stuck up pink posy if it's the last thing I do! _I thought and when the light turned to green, I was off. I didn't care about the racers so long as I beat Taffyta. Which sadly was easier said than done. Taffyta was _still _a great racer, even if she was a brat.

It wasn't long in other words before Vanellope and Taffyta were neck and neck, leading the pack. I deliberately decided to stay in the back. As we approached Gumball Gorge, I got an idea. I noticed that you could actually go up the gumball machines. I looked at the flaps that let out the gumballs and I smiled.

As I got on the ramp I turned my car to the side slightly and gunned it. As I thought my plan worked like a charm, I went the spiral track on the gumball machine and dodged the gumballs while I was at it. Then just as the flap closed I positioned myself in front of it and braced myself. The flap opened hit my car and I went flying. Then I hit another flap and another until I was literally 1) ricocheting off of the gumball machines and 2) getting ahead of all the racers. At last I landed and chanced a look behind me. The looks on both Taffyta's face and Vanellope's when they saw me leading the pack, ooh, _priceless! _  
"Ha ha!" I laughed and sped towards a huge cake like mountain.

I more or less drifted up the whole mountain and flew out of the cannon. I landed a little bumpily on the landing though and started to lose control of my car. _Oh no! _I thought panicked but then shifted gears and got 'er back in control.  
"Whew, that was a close one Tessa, don't let it happen again" I said out loud to myself and flew towards the frosty landscape of Ice Creamland.

I enjoyed the frost breeze on my skin mostly because I had never been outside in this kind of weather. Or outside at all for that matter. As I drove into the tunnel though I was suddenly rammed into. I gripped my steering wheel and swerved dangerously. I looked to my right and saw Strawberry Shortcake herself smiling sickly sweet at me and pull ahead. _Two can play at that game sister!_ I thought and sped after her.

We were on the final stretch and I hit her car at an angle. She swerved and I pulled ahead of her. I saw her in my rearview mirror trying to hit me and I turned sharply. She missed and drove off the track. I smiled to myself and crossed the finish line. I pulled over to the pits and looked up at the leaderboard

1st- Candy Cane Jane

2nd- Vanellope von Schweetz

3rd- Taffyta Muttonfudge

4th- Sticky Wipplesnit

5th- Gloyd Orangeboar

6th- Citrusella Flugpucker

7th- Adorabeezle Winterpop

8th- Rancis Fluggerbutter

9th- Candlehead.

_Ha ha! Take that Taffyta. Good luck my toosh! _I thought triumphantly and smiled at Taffyta as she pulled in.  
"Enjoy your little detour Lady Luck?" I asked her as she drove past. She in turn glared daggers at me. I beamed at her and she huffed.  
"Jane!" For a second I forgot I was Jane but I recovered quickly and smiled at Vanellope.  
"Hey Coach" I said and Vanellope smiled.  
"I can't believe it! Your first race and you end up the featured racer!" She exclaimed and my eyes widened.  
"I _am _the featured racer? Aren't I?" I said shocked.  
"Heck yeah!" Swizzle said and I turned to him "Man, I have never seen _anyone _ricochet _off the gumball towers! _That was awesome!"  
"Thanks Swizz" I said.  
"Not bad for a newb" Adorabeezle said and I smiled.  
"Hey, we were gonna head to Tappers. Wanna join?" Swizzle said. The racers looked at me expectantly and I shrugged.  
"Why not?" I said. We all drove off to Game Central Station.

You know what one of the greatest things about me is? I was never supposed to exist but I can still leave my game.

**Eh, shortish chapter. Oh well sue me. **


	7. Chapter 7: Monster

**Thanks to Raccon Girl, The Not-So-Ultimate Writer, Emiliee D, Wilfrerapo13, Tellingitkeitis1541, Sobe James, almp15, Skylar the Swifthearted, TwitchyTeagan, JustSomeAverageGuy, Loyal-LeoBlade, I support PewDieCry, Ghastly bloody blade, WhatNames, Lonewo1f28, Iluvvanellopevonschweetz, godessdestruction, mario681, Gamma102, dancer4813, Shyfrost, Sam L. Manson and estoniamakeasparkle for reviewing/following/favoriting!**

**Seven chapters already? Holy shit! I almost don't believe it! And so many followers! I am like the happiest person on earth right now! Okay enough about me, now without any further ado, I present **_**chapter 7!**_

**This chapter starts kind of dark and angsty but it at the end it's kind of funny. **

Chapter 7: Monster  
_Cause if I let him out he'll tear me up and break me down. Why won't somebody come and save me from this? Make it end!_

Tessa POV 

Quite honestly my first day of being an avatar was the best day of my life. It was awesome, just knowing people _liked _me. Some of the players were awesome, others not so great but hey, no one's perfect. And the racers liked me too! Well with the exception of Taffyta, I have a feeling Lady Luck doesn't like me. Oh well.

So you'd think my past would be forgotten or rubbed out right? Wrong. Turbo was an ever present force because every now and then, I felt it. That want to win no matter what. I hid those feelings but my nightmares didn't help my trying to forget Turbo.

"_Let's see, how many ways do I hate thee? Let me count the ways, one one-thousand" Smack "Two one-thousand" Kick "Three one-thousand" Uppercut  
"Stop please!" I begged Turbo; he just grinned and slammed me against the wall again.  
"Four one-thousand, five one-thousand, six one-thousand" After each number a blown was received.  
"Stop! Stop! Please!" _

"NO!" I screamed and bolted upright in my bed. I breathed heavily and found I was gripping the sides of my bed tightly. I drew my knees up to my chest and wrapped my arms around them. I breathed out relieved.  
"Just a dream Tessa, just a dream" I said reassuringly to myself.  
"Tessa?" I looked up and saw Vanellope standing in the doorframe.  
"Oh, Vanellope. Did I wake you up?" I asked her.  
"Nah, I couldn't sleep anyways" She answered. One look at her face and I could tell she was lying, even so I admired her for lying to try and make me feel better. I smiled weakly and her.  
"Oh, me neither" I said bout as smoothly as sandpaper.  
"So why can't you sleep?" She asked and sat down beside me.  
"Just a nightmare" I said quietly.  
"You want to talk about it?" She asked and I shook my head.  
"I don't see any point in that" I said and looked at her. I noticed she also looked distracted.  
"Hey are you okay?" I asked her.  
"Me? Oh yeah well…" She stammered. I smirked.  
"Maybe a heart to heart is what we _both _need" I said and Vanellope smiled "So what's up?"  
"Well, it's been what? A week? A week and a half since I found you? Well that's how long I've been president. It's, it's… different" She said and looked for a second kind of distant "I went from living as an outcast, sleeping in candy wrappers, avoiding the racer to now…"  
"Being a leader, sleeping on fine linin and racing with the racers you once ran from" I finished off her sentence "All it takes is time Coach"  
"Thanks Tess" She said and smiled at me "What about you? Why can't you sleep, _really_?"  
"Just shadows of the past" I said and looked away from her.  
"About your time in the Fungeon?" She asked and I nodded "I can't imagine it; you were there for _fifteen _years. Compared to you I had it easy"  
"Hmm, I wouldn't say that. Being chased by the racers each day, it must've been tough" I said grimly.  
"But you were _tortured_. Tessa is that why you can't sleep? It still haunts you, doesn't it?" The way she said it was more of a statement rather than a question.  
"One of his favorite ways to _taunt _me as he would say, was by twisting rhymes" I shuddered at the memories "Have you heard that love rhyme? Y'know 'How many ways do I love thee? Let me count the ways? One one-thousand and so on and so forth?"  
"Yeah, I think I've heard of it" She answered and I nodded.  
"Well his rhyme was 'How many ways do I hate thee? Let me count the ways'…after every one-thousand, he'd, he'd hurt me" I said and squeezed my eyes shut.  
"Enough! I'm sorry, I didn't know" She said and hugged me. I was kind of stunned by it. No one had _ever _hugged me. _Ever. _  
"It's okay Coach, there's no way you could have known" I said and hugged her back. She pulled away and shook her head.  
"I hate him!" She just about yelled.  
"And I'm just like him" I whispered quiet as could be. She still heard it.  
"What?! Did you just say you're just like him?!" She exclaimed and bowed my head.  
"I feel it Vanellope…every time I race….every time….I feel it…his greed" I said and a tear rolled down my cheek  
"Tessa" Vanellope said shocked  
"Vanellope what if I turn out like him?! What if I become consumed by greed? What if I, I" I looked at her with tear filled eyes "What if I try…what if I try to kill you?" I stammered out panicked. Her eyes widened and she shook her head.  
"Not possible" She said "You too kind and compassionate to become greedy like him"  
"Thanks" I said and wiped away what tears had fallen from eyes.  
"And besides that, look at all the friends you've got now!" She exclaimed.

"True enough, especially Gloyd for some reason. He visits me in the Garage like everyday" I said. Thanks to Vanellope I actually had my own garage now in town square which was simply referred to as 'The Garage'.  
"Oh…really?" She said with mock enthusiasm. I had a feeling why.  
"If it makes you feel any better I'm not interested in him" I said  
"Who said I'm interested in him?!" She exclaimed and blushed madly.  
"You just did" I said and she huffed angrily.  
"Well you…ugh! Good night Turd breath!" She said and stormed out of my room.

I doubled over laughing.

But y'know what? I had no problems sleeping after our 'chat'


	8. Chapter 8: Say Hey

**Thanks to Raccon Girl, The Not-So-Ultimate Writer, Emiliee D, Wilfrerapo13, Tellingitkeitis1541, Sobe James, almp15, Skylar the Swifthearted, TwitchyTeagan, JustSomeAverageGuy, Loyal-LeoBlade, I support PewDieCry, Ghastly bloody blade, WhatNames, Lonewo1f28, Iluvvanellopevonschweetz, godessdestruction, mario681, Gamma102, dancer4813, Shyfrost, Sam L. Manson and estoniamakeasparkle for reviewing/following/favoriting!**

**And presenting *drumroll* Chapter 8! **

Chapter 8: Say Hey  
_I've been a lot of places all around the way. I've seen a lot of joy and I've seen a lot of pain_

Tessa POV 

Boy did I have a 'fun' day planned. Basically Swizz went and decided to do a stunt _again _and totally trashed the Tounge Twister. So it was ultimately up to me to bring his baby back to life.

I was under the car on my creeper fixing the radiator (of course) when Gloyd decided to drop in.  
"Jane! Jane you here?" Gloyd yelled and startled me. A bolt sprung out of place and water sprayed into my face.  
"Ah! Gobdammit!" I yelled and tried to cover it up with my hand.  
"Oops" I heard Gloyd say.  
"Gloyd! Make yourself fudging useful and hand me my fudging wrench!" I yelled at him. I heard him scramble around and stick the wrench into my hand. I put the bolt back in place then rolled out glaring at him.  
"Sorry" He apologized and I rolled my eyes.  
"Someone who's sorry wouldn't keep fudging interrupting me when I'm working!" I said irritated and rolled back under the car "Could you hand me my welder please?"  
He handed me it.  
"Alright what's up Gloyd? You've been in here every day since I got here pestering me, do you want to date me or something?" I said and welded a pipe back together.  
"What?! No! I mean-" He exclaimed and I smirked.  
"Calm down Pumpkin" I told him and rolled out again "I wouldn't matter anyways. I'm not interested"  
"Oh. That's good. I think." He said and I rolled my eyes while grabbing my screwdriver. I rolled back under the car.  
"So what's up?" I asked  
"Well, you're like Vanellope's best friend right?" He asked me. Oh boy, I could tell where this was going.  
"Yeah" I answered and screwed a bolt back into place.  
"Well what does she like?" He asked and I groaned. I rolled out again and looked at him.  
"Uh huh. As I thought" I said and looked at him crossly.  
"What?" He asked innocently.  
"Knock it off with the innocent act Pumpkin" I said and rolled back under the car "You've just been trying to get to know me so you can get to Vanellope"  
"No! Well…yeah" He said defeated. I grabbed my wrench.  
"Mm-hmm" I said and started tightening bolts.  
"Oh come on Jane! Help a friend out" He just about begged me. I sighed and rolled out. I sat up and pushed my goggle onto my head. I looked at him.  
"She likes thin mint truffles" I said and he beamed at me.  
"Thanks Jane! I owe ya one!" He exclaimed. He started to leave.  
"Hold up!" I said and he stopped.  
"What?" He asked.  
"You break her heart" I shook my wrench warningly at him "And Wreck-it Ralph will be the least of you worries"  
"Okay" He said nervously.  
"And remember you didn't hear any of this from me" I said and he nodded.  
"Riiight, I didn't see anything" he said  
"No you didn't" I said and rolled back under the Tounge Twister.

I shook my head. _When Vanellope finds out I helped him she's gonna kill me _I chuckled _Or thank me. _I laughed _Or both. _

**I had to do this, sorry folks I'm a diehard Vanilla Pumpkin shipper so, I hope you enjoyed some fluffehness. Also I think I might do a few chapters like this where it's kind of like one-shots that don't really have to do with the plot, but show how Tessa's a good friend. I repeat **_**might**_


	9. Chapter 9: Haven't Had Enough

**Thanks to Raccon Girl, The Not-So-Ultimate Writer, Emiliee D, Wilfrerapo13, Tellingitkeitis1541, Sobe James, almp15, Skylar the Swifthearted, TwitchyTeagan, JustSomeAverageGuy, Loyal-LeoBlade, I support PewDieCry, Ghastly bloody blade, WhatNames, Lonewo1f28, Iluvvanellopevonschweetz, godessdestruction, mario681, Gamma102, dancer4813, Shyfrost, Sam L. Manson, estoniamakeasparkle and annabre24 for reviewing/following/favoriting!**

Chapter 9: Haven't had Enough  
_Testing, testing, I'm just suggesting, you and I might not be the best thing. Exit, exit, somehow I guessed it right, right_

Tessa POV 

I hooked up the Tounge Twister up to my car, the Minty Freeze and headed over to Swizz's house.

I pulled up to the front of his house and honked my horn.  
"Malarkey!" I yelled at his house and honked my horn again. He came out and at first looked pissed that I was just yelling at him, but then he saw the repaired Tounge Twister and he broke out into a huge goofy grin.  
"It's alive!" He exclaimed and ran over while I unhooked his car from mine.  
"Yup, just do me favor will ya Swizz? Try to keep 'er out of the Garage for a while hmm?" I said and hopped back in my car.  
"Hey wait, where you goin'?" He asked as I started up my car.  
"Back to the Garage" I answered and he shook his head.  
"Man all you do is work in that garage. Every single day you're in there fixing cars! You practically live there" He said and I shrugged.  
"It's where I'm comfortable" I said "And contrary to popular belief, I _don't _just fix cars. I make things too. I have very capable hands"  
"Well, what do you make?" He asked. I smiled at him.  
"Wanna come see?" I asked and he shrugged.  
"Why not?" He said and hopped back into his car.

We drove back to the Garage. We walked through the front of the Garage and into the back room, the Creation Room as I called it. We walked in and I turned on the lights.  
"Whoa…" Swizzle said as he looked around "What is this?"  
"My Creation Room" I said and gestured to the wide variety of machines and gadgets that surrounded us "Hey check this out!"

I walked over to one that I personally loved to create. It was looked like a roller coaster track with two loopdy-loops and a ramp.  
"Okay, watch this" I said and set down a little racecar onto the track. I ran over to a different table and grabbed a remote control. I pressed the green gumdrop button on it and the racecar took off.  
"Whoa! Wait isn't it going to-" Swizzle started to say but as my car was launched off the track and was about to crash into the wall, I pushed a purple gumdrop button and the car sprouted wings and I pulled it up.  
"Holy chip!" Swizzle exclaimed as I made the flying racecar fly around him "That is _so _cool!"  
"Thanks" I said and landed the car on one of my tables.  
"How'd you even make that?!" He asked and I shrugged.  
"Perseverance" I answered simply "And an understanding of mechanics"  
"Neato, I always knew you were cool but now you're like awesome" He said and I smiled blushing lightly.  
"Thanks again. Whenever I'm not fixing _your _car, I'm in here working on my gozmers and gadgets" I said and picked up a little wind up Tounge Twister I made. I tossed it to Swizzle. He caught it clumsily.  
"This, this is my car!" He exclaimed and stared in amazement at the little wind up.  
"I had some spare time so I decided to make it" I said and shrugged "You can keep it if you want"  
"Really? Thanks!" He said and surprise hugged me. Once again I was caught off guard.  
"Err, you're welcome" I said and he let me go.  
"See you at the RRR" He said and I smiled.  
"Kay, seeya Twist" I said and he looked at me quizzically.  
"Twist?" He asked and I shrugged.  
"I give all my friends nicknames" I said and he smiled.  
"Oh, okay. See you Speed" He said and ran out. My eyes widen and I smiled. _Speed, I could get used to that. _I thought then a shadow crossed my mind _If it didn't remind me of him so much…. _

**Foreshadowing much?**


	10. Chapter 10: Never To Late

**Thanks to Raccon Girl, The Not-So-Ultimate Writer, Emiliee D, Wilfrerapo13, Tellingitkeitis1541, Sobe James, almp15, Skylar the Swifthearted, TwitchyTeagan, JustSomeAverageGuy, Loyal-LeoBlade, I support PewDieCry, Ghastly bloody blade, WhatNames, Lonewo1f28, Iluvvanellopevonschweetz, godessdestruction, mario681, Gamma102, dancer4813, Shyfrost, Sam L. Manson, estoniamakeasparkle, annabre24 and PokeBakuFanfics for reviewing/following/favoriting!**

**OHMIGOD IT'S CHAPTER TEN ALREADY?! **

Chapter 10: Never too late  
_No one will ever see this side reflected and if there's something wrong, who would have guessed it?_

Tessa POV

I drove along in my kart eagerly. I was leading the pack in the RRR, _again_. In fact if it hadn't been for the fact I had to fix Twist's kart for the last few days I probably would've been the featured racer every day. But eh, I can't bellyache too much. I was the only good mechanic in Sugar Rush for Pete's sake.

So as I cruised down the final stretch of the race I happened to notice Lady Luck approaching.  
"Oh please" I said as Taffyta pulled up beside me "Allo Lady Luck, howya doing today?"  
"Can it Jane, I'm winning this race!" She said and I rolled my eyes.  
"Finally tired of second place?" I asked snidely. She narrowed her eyes at me and rammed into my car.

I gripped my steering wheel tightly and glared at her. _I'm going to win! Me! _I thought angrily and rammed back into her car. She swerved and I rammed into her car again.  
"Whoa!" She exclaimed trying to control her car. I rammed into it again and felt cold satisfaction roll over me when I flipped her car over and it rolled several times over itself off the road.

I crossed the finish line but instead of that triumphant good feeling I usually had, my heart stopped. Because when I pulled over and turned around I got a perfect view of Taffyta's terrified face as her gas tank exploded.  
"Oh gob no!" I yelled and ran over to the explosion.

Pieces of the Pink Lightning were scattered everywhere and the lollipop covered ground was torn up, from where _I _caused her to run off the road. Smoke from the explosion laid thick in the air. Suddenly another piece of Pink Lightning exploded and tiny pieces of pink hard candy cut up my face and body. I ignored the pain. I needed to find Taffyta!  
"Lady Luck!" I yelled looking around panic rising in my throat like bile "Taffyta!"  
"Uhhnnn" I heard someone moan. I whirled around and saw the strawberry themed racer lying face down on the ground.  
"Oh gob! Oh gob oh gob!" I yelled and ran over to her.

I knelt down beside her and flipped her over.  
"Oh gob" I said for the umpteenth time "Taffyta! Can you hear me?"  
She barely nodded her head.  
"Can you walk?" I asked her.  
"Don't….know…." She struggled to say and coughed. I pulled her to her feet and wrapped one of her arms around me. Before she even took her first step though, her right knee buckled and she fell to the ground. I winced inwardly. Quickly I knelt down beside her again and checked her for wounds. Sure enough, she had several cuts and-  
"Oy vey" I said out loud.  
"What?" She whispered out.  
"Nothing, listen you're going to feel some discomfort in your right leg, but don't worry it's okay" I said and looked down at her right leg which had a huge piece of pink rock candy sticking out of the calf. I took in a deep breath and quickly I grabbed it and yanked it out of her.  
"Ah!" She yelled in pain. I ignored her and pulled off my jacket. Quickly I ripped off a sleeve and tied it above the wound then wrapped the rest of the jacket around it.  
"That'll do it till we get you to the hospital" I said and hoisted her to her feet. She yelped and I gripped her arm around my shoulders tighter. I wrapped an arm around her waist so she could lean on me.  
"Lean on me, okay? We're gonna take this slow" I said and she nodded biting her lip. She coughed from the smoke in the air and I felt an overwhelming wave of anger at myself; guilt and dread come over me. I knew that face she had. That was the I'm-in-so-much-pain-I'm-trying-not-to-cry face. I knew that face because I've had it time and time again.

We hobbled towards the speedway and all the racers came running over. They all started speaking at once.  
"What happened?"  
"Are you okay?"  
"Oh gob!"  
"How do this happen?"  
"What are we-"  
"SHUT UP!" I yelled and everyone instantly fell silent; I knew no one had ever seen me truly angry before "Taffyta is seriously wounded, someone get her to the hospital, NOW"  
"Okay" I heard someone say warily. Rancis and Candlehead moved out of the crowd and grabbed her arms and I lifted her legs up. She yelled in pain and I saw Rancis and Candlehead jump.  
"Keep moving!" I ordered. Rancis and Candlehead exchanged a glance but nodded. Rancis started up his Kit Kart and me and Candlehead sat on the sides. I held Taffyta's bad leg up to try and slow the bleeding some more.  
"Jane!" Candlehead suddenly exclaimed.  
"What?" I asked  
"You're bleeding!" She said and I looked down. Sure enough I had a bunch of little bleeding cuts.  
"So?" I asked her "Haven't you seen blood before?"  
The look on her face told me otherwise.

Someone must have alerted the doctors because they were there waiting for us when we arrived. They took Taffyta immediately and I breathed out relieved. I ran in with the doctors for as long as I could until they made me stop and stay in the waiting room. I sat in one of the chairs and ran my hands through my hair. I saw the sliding doors open and Vanellope run in.  
"Good gob! Crepe, Jane you look horrible" Vanellope exclaimed at me as she ran into the waiting room.  
"Thanks" I murmured sarcastically.  
"Jane you're bleeding you should get looked at" She said and I shook my head.  
"They're no deeper than paper cuts, the bleeding will stop soon" I said.  
"And you would know that wouldn't you?" She said crossly and I looked up and glared at her.  
"Actually yeah, I would" I growled at her. She raised her eyebrows at me.  
"What happened?" Vanellope asked.  
"Lady Luck crashed" I said bluntly and Vanellope shook her head.  
"You know that's not what I mean, how'd she crash?" She asked a little more aggressively.  
"I don't want to talk about it" I said and she gave me a hard look.  
"Jane how did she crash?!" She said like an order. I glared at her.  
"I. Don't. Want. To talk. About it." I said pulling patience out of my butt.  
"Jane! Tell me!" She yelled at me, I kept my head down. By now every racer's attention was on us.  
"Tell me!" She yelled and I snapped.  
"I ALMOST KILLED HER!" I screeched and stood up with my fists clenched. A collective gasp went throughout the waiting room. I sat back down.

"We were on the final stretch. She rammed into me, I, I got mad. I rammed into her repeatedly until, until, I made her car roll over and over off the track" I said and bowed my head.  
"Speed, we've all done that to one another. We've all caused on another to crash" Swizzle said and I shook my head.  
"You didn't see her terrified face before gas tank exploded. You didn't see her lying face down in the ground cut up and bleeding. You didn't see her yell in pain as I pulled a chunk of her own car out of her leg" I said "I almost killed her. And for what? A spot in the middle of the damn roster" I slammed my fist down onto my chair "Give someone else the middle spot, I don't want it" I growled at Vanellope and got up to leave.

As I reached the door a little nurse candy stopped me.  
"Ma'am please go sit down. You have several bleeding cuts that should be looked at" She said sweetly.  
"Get out of my way" I growled at her. Suddenly a blue flash appeared in front of me. Vanellope.  
"Jane, you should get looked at" She said and I gritted my teeth.  
"Get. Out. Of. My. Way" I said deadly calm.  
"No you go sit down now" She said and I snapped again.  
"Move!" I yelled at her. I saw her look at me shocked but she didn't move.  
"I don't have time for this crepe" I snarled and shoved Vanellope out of the way. After I did it I chanced a look over my shoulder. The look of pure shock on Vanellope's face was enough to make me want to never show my face here again.

I ran the rest of the way to the castle, regretting all my actions. When I got to the castle I ran straight past my room and to my old room.

The Fungeon.


	11. Chapter 11: Louder Than Thunder

**Thanks to Raccon Girl, The Not-So-Ultimate Writer, Emiliee D, Wilfrerapo13, Tellingitkeitis1541, Sobe James, almp15, Skylar the Swifthearted, TwitchyTeagan, JustSomeAverageGuy, Loyal-LeoBlade, I support PewDieCry, Ghastly bloody blade, WhatNames, Lonewo1f28, Iluvvanellopevonschweetz, godessdestruction, mario681, Gamma102, dancer4813, Shyfrost, Sam L. Manson, estoniamakeasparkle, annabre24 and PokeBakuFanfics for reviewing/following/favoriting!**

Chapter 11: Louder Than Thunder  
_I know this isn't much but, I know I could I could be better. I don't think I deserve it; selflessness, find your way into my heart._

Tessa POV 

I didn't sleep. Not a wink. I just sat in my cell, as the _real _me, not Jane, Tessa and stared at my reflection in my helmet. Vanellope was probably busy doing whatever, which why she hadn't come down to see me. I didn't mind, in fact I'm glad she hadn't found me. I didn't want to see her. Not after last night. Not after what I did. But it as it seemed, fate and destiny had other ideas.

"Jane! Jane!" I heard Vanellope calling for me. I just stayed still and waited. It sounded like Vanellope paused, probably making sure no one else was around. Then as I predicted her call for me changed.  
"Tessa! Tessa! Where are you?!" She yelled and I heard run down the hall. I heard run past me, pause then back up to where I was. I speak before she does.  
"When I lived here, heck even now; I used to look at my reflection and count the ways I was different from him. Now I look at it…and I see a mirror image of him" I said and touched my forehead to the helmet "Coach…close the door and never come down here again. It'd be better for everyone…."  
"What?! No! Tessa that's crazy talk" Vanellope exclaimed and tears started rolling down my cheeks. I started glitching out of control between my two forms.  
"Don't you understand?!" I yelled, jumped to my feet and turned around "I'm turning into him! I, I wanted the spotlight to myself! I nearly killed to get it! I _shoved _you! Vanellope, _please! _I don't want to kill people" My knees buckled and I fell to the floor "Please….leave me"  
"Tessa" Vanellope said and knelt beside me. She wrapped an arm around me as I sobbed.  
"Please" I said and looked at her "Please"  
"Tessa shh, shh" She said soothingly and held me close "You're nothing like Turbo. Okay? You are not like him"  
"But, but what about…?" I started but just let my sentence trail off.  
"It's in the past now. You have to let these things pass" She said "Now c'mon, go upstairs, take shower. Do something nice for yourself. I have to run races"  
"Okay" I squeaked out and stood up.

OooOOOooO

After a long shower I headed to my garage. Thankfully because the racers were racing, the village was more or less deserted. I walked into my garage and saw someone had dragged my car here. I sighed and shook my head. I headed into my Creation Room and sat down at one of my tables. Carefully I started working on a project. I took apart a few dead end projects that at one time may have been a robot or something and tinkered the various pieces together.

I don't know how long I was working on it but I do know that when I stopped the arcade was closed. Carefully I wrapped it up and headed to the hospital.

Now that there were actually people in the village square I was given several dirty look but I ignored them. When I got to the hospital waiting outside of it was Rancis and Candlehead.  
"I assume you're the barricade?" I asked sarcastically.  
"You've got a lot of guts to show your face in public again" Rancis responded.  
"At least my face isn't constantly staring into a mirror Fluggerbutter" I said and started to walk past them. Rancis grabbed my shoulder before I could go in though. It took all my willpower not to punch then and there.  
"Let go of me Fluggerbutter, before I rip your hand off and beat you with it" I snarled at him.  
"And you'd do that wouldn't you?" He said smugly.  
"Try me" I growled. His eyes widened and he took a step back. I sent him one more warning glare before walking up to the front desk.

"Hi, I'd like to see a patient" I said and the receptionist smiled at me.  
"Who?" She asked.  
"Taffyta Muttonfudge" I said and shuffled my feet.  
"Oh, you're the racer that caused her to crash" She said still sweet as could be "Room 3b"  
"Thanks" I said and headed to the room number as I turned to walk though she stopped me.  
"One more thing sweetie, try not to cause any more explosions, okay?" She asked and I glared at her.  
"No promises" I growled and stormed off to Taffyta's room.

I stopped just before I entered her room but swallowed hard and walked in. I couldn't help the sigh of relief that escaped my lips when I saw Lady Luck was passed out still. I walked over to her bedside and put my gift for her on the bedside table. I turned to leave.  
"You're not skipping out on me are you?" I heard Lady Luck's voice croak. I stopped and turned around. Taffyta's eyes were wide open. I sighed heavily and pulled a chair up to her bedside.  
"No" I said and bowed my head "By the way tell your devil dog to lay off will ya?"  
"Rancis? He's always been like that about me" She said and looked off towards her window. I let a moment of silence linger.  
"I'm sorry" I said and shook my head "I caused this"  
"Yeah you did, didn't you?" She said kind of coldly. I bowed my head and put my gift on her lap.  
"I know this isn't much but, I think you'll like it" I said and she raised an eyebrow at me.  
"Bribery to get me to forgive you? That's low Jane" She said crossly.  
"Not bribery, simply an apology. I don't expect you to forgive me" I said "Just to tolerate me"  
Once again she raised an eyebrow at me. She looked at the poorly wrapped gifted, shrugged slightly and opened it.  
"A little box?" she asked and I rolled my eyes.  
"You have to open it smart one" I said and she rolled her eyes. She opened it and a car popped out of it. She looked at quizzically.  
"Twist the knob on the side" I said and she did. The little cars started moving and the whole thing lit up. In the background the song "Your dying Heart" by Adrian von Ziegler plays. Her eyes widen.  
"That, that's my car" Taffyta said and I smiled softly.  
"I know it's not the real thing but, until you can get into the kart bakery and make a new Pink Lightning, I thought this might do" I said and stood up.  
"You made this?" She asked and I nodded.  
"Started it this morning finished it a little after the arcade closed" I answered "Like I said, I'm not looking for forgiveness. I'm just looking to ease your pain some"  
"Wait, if you worked on this all day…. Weren't you supposed to be the featured racer?" She asked  
"I declined it" I said "Vanellope got it instead. I didn't want it"  
"You declined because I crashed?" She asked and I shook my head.  
"No, because I _made _you crash, and get hurt. I have sense of honor believe it or not…and an understanding of pain. Speaking of, a tip; elevate your leg it'll alleviate some of the discomfort" I said and started to walk away.  
"How do you know that?" She asked. I chose to ignore the question and keep walking.

OooOOOooO

"So how was your visit with Taffyta?" Vanellope asked as we drove down to the speedway. I wasn't going to race, just watch.  
"Lady Luck is fine, it won't be long before she's out here as sassy as ever" I answered and drove over to the pits and parked. I walked over to the 'Popcorn' stands and decided to help the marshmallows clean up the track before the race. As I swept the finish line though, I listened to Vanellope.  
"Alright everyone, good luck and all that stuff. Let the Ran-" I perked my ears up. Why'd she stop talking? I turned around my eyes widened.

"Am I interrupting? Oh, well. Have some candy"

**And start playing suspenseful Inception music...NOW**


	12. Chapter 12: Skyfall

**Thanks to Raccon Girl, The Not-So-Ultimate Writer, Emiliee D, Wilfrerapo13, Tellingitkeitis1541, Sobe James, almp15, Skylar the Swifthearted, TwitchyTeagan, JustSomeAverageGuy, Loyal-LeoBlade, I support PewDieCry, Ghastly bloody blade, WhatNames, Lonewo1f28, Iluvvanellopevonschweetz, godessdestruction, mario681, Gamma102, dancer4813, Shyfrost, Sam L. Manson, estoniamakeasparkle, annabre24, PokeBakuFanfics and Swiftshadow2000 for reviewing/following/favoriting!**

Chapter 12: Skyfall  
_This is the end. Hold your breath and count to ten. Feel the earth move and then hear my heart burst again…_

Tessa POV

Honestly I'm not sure what shocked me more, either a) My dad was alive or b) My dad was part giant bug thing. But one thing kept me petrified. In his huge pink claws he held Vanellope by her throat.  
"Hello my traitorous subjects!" He said in his usual over-joyed voice "I'm back!"  
I saw Vanellope squirming in his claws and I was snapped out of my daze. Taking the broom I had in my hand threw it at Turbo. I hit him in the side of the head. A collective gasp went through the crowd as he turned around slowly and saw me.  
"Ha! Ha! Hello there daughter!" He said and flew down to me. I took an involuntary step back.  
"Put her down" I said trying to sound brave even though truthfully I was terrified.  
"Oh who? The little Glitch?" He said and looked at her "I don't see why I should"  
"Because she's not who you want" I said and let a wave of orange code go over me, turning me back to how I normally looked "I am"  
"Ah, and there's my little Turbo-Tessa" He said and I narrowed my eyes at him "You look well, sadly"  
"As do you. So _dad _how bout we just leave the Sugar Rush characters out of this and settle the score" I said and he smirked.  
"You still want to protect them?" He asked almost incredulously and tightened his grip on Vanellope's throat. She yelped and I gulped. I was in overdrive now trying to figure out how I could get Turbo out of this game. My only logical response to how he survived is he was never unplugged so he regenerated.  
"Turn around Tessa, look at these people you want to _protect_. Do they look like they want to protect you?" I turned around and saw everyone staring at me either in horror or shock or both, my dad rested one of his claw like hands on my shoulder and put his head to level with me "Do they look like they see a difference between us?" He asked his face glitched into that of Turbo "Well do they?"  
"No" I said and bowed my head "But I'm still going to protect them"

I then elbowed my dad hard as I could in his eye.  
"AH!" He yelled and dropped Vanellope.  
"Run!" I yelled at her as Turbo turned to face me "RUN!"  
I sprinted to the Grand Central Station, knowing my dad was less than a hair behind me. I ran through the tunnel.  
"Gangway!" I yelled as I ran into the Station "Gang-oof!"

I felt myself being hit from behind and propelled forward. I went straight through a 'Sonic says' machine and skidded to a stop. Everyone in the GCS now froze and stared at me as I got up slowly. I looked down and saw I was bleeding in several places and had a large piece of glass sticking out of my side. I gritted my teeth and pulled it out. I looked up and saw Turbo approaching me.  
"I never thought you would go easy on me" I said and coughed up some blood smiling.  
"Ha! You, you're funny. I guess I did teach you something" He said and I laughed, but that laughing turned into coughing almost instantly. Suddenly he back handed me and I went flying backwards. I stopped when I hit the ticket counter thing. I fell down from it and stood on my hands and knees. But slowly I got up. Once again I'm thrown backward and slammed into the wall. But I got up. He picked me up and threw me near the entrance of Sugar Rush. I slid to a halt in front of the entrance, leaving a huge smeared trail of blood across the shiny floor. I saw that the racers had gathered in the entrance. With much difficulty, I rolled over and pushed myself to my feet.

"Why! Do you get up?" Turbo yelled at me as I stood. I tried to speak but instead coughed up more blood. I wiped my mouth and looked at Turbo.  
"Because….Because I have to" I said and almost fell to the floor "Because of them" I gestured to the racers behind me "Because I have nowhere else to go. Because" I hacked up more blood "I won't die till you're gone. _For good_"  
He snatched me up and smiled villainously at me.  
"You're already dead" He said and I started laughing, almost manically. I looked up at Turbo with eyes that were glowing bright white.  
"That's where you're wrong" I said and let the Power Surge take me over. My entire body glowed a bright orange.  
"It, it burns! Ah!" Turbo yelled and tried to drop me. But I held onto his hand as his skin started to crack and light shine through it.  
"AHHHH!" He screamed in agony.  
"Good bye dad" I said and closed my eyes tightly. I let the light that was shining from me grow until it filled the entire room almost.

When my dad's screams of pain stopped, I stopped glowing. I dropped out of the air and fell to the ground. I stood for all of two seconds before falling forward into a puddle of my own blood. I smiled softly to myself before everything turned fuzzy and melted into black.

_For this is the end. I've drowned and dreamt this moment. So overdue I owe them, swept away, I'm stolen…._

_Let the sky fall  
When it crumbles  
We will stand tall  
Face it all together_

_Let the sky fall  
When it crumbles  
We will stand tall  
Face it all together  
At Skyfall  
That Skyfall_


	13. Chapter 13: Carry On

**Thanks to Raccon Girl, The Not-So-Ultimate Writer, Emiliee D, Wilfrerapo13, Tellingitkeitis1541, Sobe James, almp15, Skylar the Swifthearted, TwitchyTeagan, JustSomeAverageGuy, Loyal-LeoBlade, I support PewDieCry, Ghastly bloody blade, WhatNames, Lonewo1f28, Iluvvanellopevonschweetz, godessdestruction, mario681, Gamma102, dancer4813, Shyfrost, Sam L. Manson, estoniamakeasparkle, annabre24, PokeBakuFanfics, Swiftshadow2000,** **Anabelle624 for reviewing/following/favoriting!**

**Psych! You guys thought it was the end, didn't you? *broken beer bottle flies at head, I dodge it barely* O…kay, so you guys are a little mad…. Whatever! Late April fools! Enjoy the **_**real **_**last chapter!**

Chapter 13: Carry On  
_Though I've never been through hell like that, I've closed enough windows to know you can never look back_

Tessa POV 

At first I didn't open my eyes, I just listened. I smiled I heard a song. It was 'Your dying Heart' by Adrian von Ziegler. I opened my eyes and looked to my side. On the bedside is the little music box I made for Taffyta. I started to sit up and paused. It was a little painful but I sat up nonetheless I looked around saw I was alone. I cocked my head to the side and listened.

"I hope she's gonna be okay" That was Vanellope.  
"Don't worry; did you see how Speed put the whoop on Turbo? She'll be fine" I smirked at Twist's always cool nature. I slid off my bed and looked at my clothes. To my surprise I was back in my own clothes. I took a step and winced. I was sore. I realized I probably had a ton of stitches.

"I agree with Swizzle. She's tough" My eyes widened. That was Lady Luck! I paused at the doorframe and looked out. Just down the hall is the waiting room and to my shock most of the racers are there. Vanellope is sitting in a chair and her back is to me. In fact all the racers backs are to me. I smiled and walked very quietly over to them.  
"Don't worry Vanellope, it'll be okay" Gloyd said to Vanellope and I chuckled lightly. I set a hand down on her shoulder.  
"Y'know for once Pumpkin's right. I'm fine" I said and Vanellope's eyes widened. Everyone around her gasped and she looked at my hand then turned her head fully and looked at me. I smiled at her.  
"You didn't you could get rid of me that easily, didya coach?" I asked her. She leaped up and attack-hugged me.  
"Ohmigob! Never scare me like that again!" She yelled and cried into my shoulder. I hugged her back and smiled softly.  
"Hey, calm down. It's okay, I'm right here" I said and rubbed her back. She pulled away and smiled a few tears still falling from her eyes. I then looked at the other racers and frowned slightly. I sighed and shook my head.

"I'm sorry" I said looking at them "I should have told you guys the truth, instead of lying to you and stooping to my father's level" I said and bowed my head. I felt someone put their hand on my shoulder. I looked up and saw Taffyta smiling at me.  
"Do you honestly think we'd accept you if we knew the truth first thing?" She asked and I smiled softly.  
"You're okay Tessa" Gloyd said and gave me a thumbs up. I smiled.  
"Really?" I asked and they nodded.  
"Really. Tessa that thing may have been your dad. But you're you" Candlehead said  
"A great mechanic" Swizzle said and I smiled at him, my cheeks burning lightly.  
"An amazing friend" Gloyd said and I chuckled, understanding what he was referencing to.  
"And a true hero" Taffyta said. Little tears were at the corners of my eyes. I smiled.  
"You're all awesome" I said  
"That's true" Swizzle said and I smirked.

"Hey we've all gotta ask, what did you mean when Turbo asked 'Why do you get up?' and you said: 'Because I have to, because of them, because I have nowhere else to go' what'd you mean by that? I'm sure you could've found another game" Taffyta asked.  
"Because Lady Luck, I care about each and every one of you" I answered simply "Even if there was the chance that after revealing my true self, you wouldn't accept me. I didn't care. I love this place, I love my friends and I love the fact that I have a home, a _real_ home. I couldn't just let him take over again. I couldn't" I smiled and nodded "I'll always protect this place and the people in it, _always_. Until my last breath"

Everyone nodded and a few people clapped for me. Vanellope gave me a thumbs up.  
"This is your home" She confirmed. I smiled.  
"And you're my family" I said and hugged her.

**And that's it! But don't worry there shall be one-shots about the adventures and mishaps of Tessa!**


End file.
